Warp Zoned Presents
Most Recent: Top Story
Kickstart This! Guide to Getting Your Game Funded (Part 1)
It has been five long years since I crafted Kickstart This! How To Get More Coin For Your Game, my first guide to crowdfunding for game developers. Since then, we have seen a smorgasbord of game projects launch into the crowdfunding seas, some reaching the legendary Land of the Funded, while most turned back. Those who went in without a map were suddenly lost at sea or smashed against the rocks of failure.
During this period, I launched two film projects on Kickstarter. The first, The Illuminant Midnight Project, crashed and burned, raising a paltry £874 against a target of £15,000. It was a trio of short films that were, in retrospect, far too ambitious, with a lofty goal on a project that I had I not put enough work into (and I had put in a lot of work).
Several years later, I took what I learned from those first mistakes and launched The Water Rat, a short film with a single location and only three actors. The constraints allowed a much smaller initial target of £500. We passed this in three days, ending our 30 day run at the start of April with a total of £1750, enough to make two short films.
With that in mind, it seemed like an ideal time to revisit my original guide, as well as its sequel (Kickstart This! 10 Pointers To Get More Gold For Your Game). I’m going to address new features that Kickstarter has launched, and look at old ideas in a new light, especially in developing an audience or community before launch. (more…)
The Games of May 2018
Game publishers are launching just a handful of “new” games this month, but Switch owners should be pleased with a slew of big re-releases from Nintendo, Capcom, and Nicalis.
You might not agree with all our choices, but the next four weeks are going to be great if you’re looking forward to Donkey Kong Country: Tropical Freeze, Hyrule Warriors: Definitive Edition, Mega Man Legacy Collection, Ikaruga, and many others. It’s almost a shame that Dark Souls Remastered‘s Switch launch was pushed out to the Summer, but at least PC, PS4, and Xbox One players will get to stay on theme.
You can find out exactly why the Warp Zoned staff is looking forward to these games, and view the release schedule for all of this month’s new games, after the break. (more…)
Posted in 3DS, Features, PC, PS4, Switch, Top Story, Xbox One
Tagged Hyrule Warriors, Ikaruga, Just Shapes and Beats, Mega Man Legacy Collection, Mega Man Legacy Collection 2
The Road to E3 2018: Smash Bros., Pokemon, Fire Emblem, and the Rest of Nintendo’s Surprises
The 2018 E3 Expo begins in exactly 49 days… so let the speculation begin! Today, we’re peering into our crystal ball at what Nintendo might have in store for gaming’s biggest showcase. (more…)
Posted in Features, Switch, Top Story
Tagged E3 2018, Fire Emblem: Three Houses, Metroid Prime 4, Pokemon Switch, Super Smash Bros. Ultimate, Yoshi
The Games of April 2018
After the end of a long Winter, things usually start bursting to life in April thanks to the fresh Spring air. This adage used to apply to the game release calendar too, but only a handful of new games will make their way to store shelves in April 2018. And an even smaller handful of titles will rise above the rest.
Nintendo will launch their latest experiment, the cardboard-powered Nintendo Labo kits, for the Switch this month. They’ll be joined by a new beginning for Kratos in Sony Santa Monica’s God of War, and the end for Kazuma Kiryu in Sega’s Yakuza 6: The Song of Life.
You can find out why the Warp Zoned staff is looking forward to these games, and view the release schedule for all of this month’s new games, after the break. (more…)
Posted in Features, Mobile, PC, Switch, Top Story, Vita, Xbox One
Tagged God of War 4, Nintendo Labo: Robot Kit, Nintendo Labo: Variety Kit, Yakuza 6: The Song of Life
The Games of March 2018
Welcome to March, you’re cordially invited to a party for the Nintendo Switch’s first anniversary. While fans surely have plenty of backlogged Switch games to keep them busy, the consolemaker also has one new game on their schedule to mark this milestone. And if you’re a Switch owner, and you’re on the lookout for a new game, you might be interested in Kirby Star Allies.
Kirby’s adventures always feature a unique art style, and that’s something that’s very much in vogue with a few other games set to launch this month including The Behemoth’s Pit People and Level-5’s Ni No Kuni II: Revenant Kingdom. Elsewhere on the release calendar, after a short delay, it looks like Ubisoft is ready to delve deep into the heart of a doomsday cult in Far Cry 5.
Why is the Warp Zoned staff looking forward to these games? You can find out after the break, along with a complete release schedule for all of this month’s new releases. (more…)
Posted in 3DS, Features, Mobile, PC, PS4, Switch, Top Story, Vita, Xbox One
Tagged Far Cry 5, Kirby Switch, Ni No Kuni II: Revenant Kingdom, Pit People
Kickstart This! Grood
It’s been an exciting time in the world of Kickstarter. In addition to prepping a campaign for a short film I am working on, a game that I backed ages ago, Inner Space, was finally released. It is only when you have tried to raise your own funds that you realise the near-impossible task of creating a crowdfunding project, and the endless hard work that goes in to making it succeed.
But some projects make it look effortless by doing a lot of the groundwork before they open their campaigns for donations. And with video games, it is easier to sell something that looks spectacular, or something that is a labour of love, rather than a product to attach microtransactions to. Which brings us to the frantic shooting extravaganza that is Grood… (more…)
The Games of February 2018
The remakes are coming! The remakes are coming! There aren’t many original games making their way to store shelves in February, but if you’re interested in exploring some of gaming’s greatest hits thanks to some new remakes and remasters, then you’ll definitely want to pay attention to this month’s upcoming releases.
Sony is rebuilding Shadow of the Colossus “from the ground up” on the PS4, and Square Enix is giving a similar full makeover to Secret of Mana. Atlus is stuffing a wide variety of new content into Radiant Historia to create Radiant Historia: Perfect Chronology for the 3DS. And Nintendo and Sega are bringing Bayonetta back for another fight against the heavenly horde in both Bayonetta and Bayonetta 2.
You can find what we’re looking forward to after the break, along with a complete release schedule for all of this month’s new releases. (more…)
Posted in 3DS, Features, Mobile, PC, PS4, Switch, Top Story, Vita, Xbox One
Tagged Bayonetta, Bayonetta 2, Radiant Historia, Secret of Mana, Shadow of the Colossus
The Video Game Canon: 2018’s “Version 2.0” Update
The Video Game Canon is a statistical meta-ranking of dozens of “Best Video Games of All Time” lists that began in 2017 with Version 1.0, and the ranking has been updated several times since then. Which game is #1? There’s only one way to find out…
The Video Game Canon has been upgraded to “Version 2.0” thanks to the addition of four new lists that were published throughout the last year. Edge Magazine’s “100 Greatest Videogames” issue, Jeux Video’s “Top 100 Best Games of All Time,” Polygon’s massive “500 Best Games of All Time,” and Stuff UK’s “50 Greatest Games of All Time” have reshuffled the ranking in a big way.
Let’s take a look…
Visit VideoGameCanon.com for all future updates to this project and to explore the complete Top 1000.